A lover of all holidays, Valentine’s Day has always struck me as one of the silliest, but somehow also loveliest. Hater of heart shapes, lover of romance this one was self-love in theme and started with a full 8 hours of sleep followed by winning a writing contest (shocking, I’m sure). Not romantic externally in ANY way, but I loved it just the same. I’ve bought myself flowers every week this year and before flying back to Europe, found this cheeky lip-print YSL scarf at the outlet. (Chicago- you have a YSL OUTLET!).

Work lead to French class which read to takeaway sushi and a spot of Ina’s cheesecake I’d made over the weekend. Is this the best Ina recipe of all time? Maybe not. Was it still good, absolutely. I think I inadvertently traumatized myself tasting this before Ina recommended. It was like taking a bite of ricotta. After it set for a day, it was much improved, but for me the mouth feel was still lingering of the day prior. Next go, I’ll sub more cream cheese for ricotta, but I’ll let you decide for yourself with the recipe below.

Ina’s Lemon Cheesecake

• For crust:
• 2 c. Bischoff cookie crumbs
• 2 T. sugar
• 6 T. butter, melted

• For cheesecake:
• 16 oz. cream cheese at room temp
• 1 1/4c. sugar
• 1.5 c. ricotta
• 1/2 c. limoncello at room temp
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• Zest of two lemons, chopped
• 5 eggs at room temp.

1. Preheat oven to 350. Take a 9×13″ pan and spray with cooking spray. Set aside.
2. Combine all ingredients for crust then press into pan.
3. Bake 8 minutes then allow to cool completely.
4. In a large bowl combine cream cheese and sugar, beat 3 minutes until fluffy.
5. Add in ricotta and beat another minute.
6. Add limoncello, vanilla, and lemon zest, beat another minute.
7. Add one egg at a time, stirring until just incorporated each time.
8. Pour mixture over cooled crust.
9. Set pan of cheesecake into a low pan of hot water to avoid cracking.
10. Bake the whole nest of pans for 50 minutes. The center of the cheesecake will still jiggle.
11. Turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake in there for 15 minutes.
12. Allow to cool to room temperature and then cover and place in fridge, at least overnight. Do not taste in advance of this!!